


Intertwined

by Babbling



Category: A.C.E (Beat Interactive Band)
Genre: Angst, Arranged Marriage, Boys Kissing, Butler Kim Sehyoon, Cuddling & Snuggling, Fluff, Husbands, M/M, Modern Royalty, Prince Junhee, Secret Marriage, Sehjun are married but nobody except them knows about it, Sleepy Cuddles, its cute
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-25
Updated: 2021-02-12
Packaged: 2021-03-11 00:15:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,127
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28315860
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Babbling/pseuds/Babbling
Summary: Most people say it's pure luck that Sehyoon gets to work for the most important family in the entire country. There are many much more experienced bodyguards after all.Still, it takes Sehyoon a while to consider himself lucky, too, and once he does, it's for a very different reason than everybody else thinks... Not that anyone can ever know about that.
Relationships: Kim Sehyoon | Wow/Park Junhee | Jun
Comments: 17
Kudos: 34





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Merry Christmas guys~

Sehyoon slowly shifted to a more comfortable position, trying his best to not wake Junhee who had placed his head in his lap. Over an hour had already passed and Sehyoon’s body started to feel numb. Until now he hadn’t dared to move but his position eventually got too painful and he hadn’t been able to take it any longer.

Junhee squirmed in his sleep but his eyes didn’t open and Sehyoon quickly went back to carefully caressing his hair, while he observed him. There was so much love burning in his chest that it seemed to be close to bursting. 

Soft sunlight fell on Junhee’s right cheek, making his skin glow golden and Sehyoon focused his attention towards the window and the scenery that was flying past them so that he wouldn’t accidentally end up kissing Junhee awake because he wasn’t able to control himself. 

Sehyoon loved traveling. It always made him feel calm and free and he knew that Junhee felt the same way. Away from home, there were less people paying attention to them which meant that away from home, they could finally be themselves.

However, the first familiar looking buildings and hills reminded him of the fact that that would have to change again, very soon. They had been able to be themselves for two months; two wonderful months which now felt like nothing more than a dream, though the simple silver band on his finger told Sehyoon otherwise. It was reflecting the sunlight while Sehyoon was playing with Junhee’s hair and suddenly he felt the urge to look at the latter’s ring which was identical to his own. It was hidden underneath Junhee’s head, on the finger of his hand which was serving him as a pillow even though Sehyoon had already given him his coat. A new wave of adoration hit him and no longer able to control himself, he carefully glanced at their driver, before bending down and pressing a soft kiss onto the corner of Junhee’s lips.

Again, the other stirred in his sleep, for some seconds a tiny smile replacing the former pout, but also this time Junhee didn’t wake up. They had been on their journey the entire last day and despite loving traveling, Junhee still hated planes and always had a hard time falling asleep on them. That fact often led to him passing out as soon as they sat inside a different vehicle and Sehyoon ending up getting used as a pillow. Not that he minded. He was all right with everything as long as it made Junhee happy. 

The vibrating of his phone brutally pulled him out of his thoughts and he hastily answered it, glancing at his husband who apparently wouldn’t even get disturbed by someone screaming into his ear. 

“Butler Kim?” Everything inside of Sehyoon turned cold at the sound of the familiar female voice and his hand in Junhee’s hair clenched into a fist. 

“Yes?” He tried to make his voice sound as emotionless as possible.

“How long till you will arrive?” A glance outside told him that there wasn’t much time left. 

“We’re very close, my lady. Maybe ten more minutes.” The only answer he got was a constant beeping, signalizing that the other person had hung up on him. He sighed, savoring the image of Junhee peacefully sleeping in his lap and the feeling of his soft curls between his fingers for some more seconds, before he carefully started rubbing his shoulder and calling his name,

“Jun-ah. Jun-ah!” His husband furrowed his eyebrows, the pout becoming more prominent, followed by him opening his eyes and blinking at Sehyoon sleep drunkenly.

“Are we there already?”, he asked, his voice still hoarse and Sehyoon shook his head, feeling the urge to caress his cheek but he stayed still instead.

“Not yet but we will arrive soon.” 

“Shit.”, Junhee mumbled and with Sehyoon’s help sat upright, his hair sticking out into every direction from his head. It looked extremely adorable and he couldn’t help but smile and try to smoothen them. Junhee let it happen, leaning into the touch and closing his eyes once more, clearly enjoying the feeling of Sehyoon brushing his hair with his fingers. Once he was done, he wanted to pull his hand away again but his husband quickly grabbed it, holding it in his lap while he looked at him with sad eyes. 

“So that’s it? We’ll go back to pretending as always?” Sehyoon smiled sadly. 

“As always.”, he replied, feeling his heart clenching in his chest. The thought hurt him just as much as it hurt Junhee. The latter nodded slowly, his shoulders slumping down even more. Gone was the careless man with whom Sehyoon had spent the last two months. What stayed was a boy who looked like the weights of his burdens were close to crushing him. 

“It won’t be for forever.”, Sehyoon said, trying to sound as convincing as possible. Perhaps he would be able to even convince himself like this. Junhee lifted his hand to his lips and pressed a kiss against his knuckles. 

“I love you.”, he whispered so quietly that only Sehyoon was able to hear it and the latter tried to put his answer into his smile while the car passed a huge, pompous gate and eventually stopped. 

“We arrived, Your Highness.” The driver informed them and Junhee gave him a polite nod. He glanced at Sehyoon who encouragingly squeezed his hand one last time, before they had to let go of each other. Then Sehyoon got out of the car and made his way around it to the other side where he opened it for Junhee who gave him a grateful smile. He took his hands for support even though both of them knew very well that he didn’t need it and Sehyoon savored the warm touch until it left him again, only some seconds later.

Immediately a few servants rushed towards Junhee, greeting him with bows, before guiding him towards the entrance where he disappeared. Sehyoon stayed behind, helping the rest of the staff to unload their luggage while he mentally prepared himself for the weeks to come. Sometimes he really asked himself how his life had turned out like this. People his age usually worked in offices, became scientists or artists or were still studying, but here he was; working as a butler and bodyguard and already having broken every rule there was, despite the Park family being his first proper job. He knew that he wouldn’t have gotten it in the first place if it wouldn’t have been for Junhee and sometimes he wasn’t sure if that should make him happy or not. Because one thing was for sure; if he hadn’t met Park Junhee, then his life would be a lot less chaotic now. 

Sehyoon put the last suitcase down on the cold marble floor and let his eyes wander over the familiar grand entrance hall. In the past three years, he had seen it a million times and still, he couldn’t shake off that feeling of walking into terrain he didn’t know the rules of. No matter how long he had tried to learn, there would never be a time when he would be able to move freely without having to be scared to set a wrong step, followed by the ground breaking away under him at any second. 

“Are they having lunch?” Sehyoon’s question was directed at nobody in particular and a young maid nodded. 

“Lunch is getting served right now.”, she replied and he thanked her, before making his way towards the dining hall. On his way, he passed many more servants, most of them welcoming him back while the old portraits on the walls watched over them with dead eyes. Sehyoon really hadn’t missed them and he couldn’t wait to get into the newer and brighter part of the palace. 

However, the closer he came to the dining hall, the further did his stomach turn itself upside down and once he stood in front of the tall, heavy door, he took a deep breath. Loud voices of people arguing were sounding through the wood. Nothing out of the ordinary and still, going inside would be a difficult challenge to face. But he needed to be strong. Not for himself but for Junhee. Sehyoon exhaled and then opened the door as quietly as possible, slipping into the room while trying to stay unnoticed. He succeeded but he could have as well opened the door with a loud bang. Nobody was paying any attention to him anyway.

There were three people on the table; two of them being involved in what seemed to be a very heated argument while a little girl was extremely invested in feeding her lunch to one of her plushies. 

Sehyoon closed the door behind himself, his eyes immediately finding Junhee who looked clearly upset. Whatever they were discussing, it made him feel uncomfortable and Sehyoon hated that he couldn’t step in to help him. They were married and still it seemed like they were nothing more than an illusion.

“Why now? Why not later?” Junhee’s voice was loud and full of anger mixed with desperation. It made Sehyoon’s skin prickle in a way that he didn’t like and he wanted nothing more than to walk over to him and put a comforting hand on his shoulder. However, since he couldn’t do that, he took his position next to the door instead, observing the argument while also making sure that nobody who wasn’t allowed would enter. Not that that was something that happened in a tightly secured place like this.

“There is no later! It’s already decided.” Junhee’s mother sounded similar angry as her son but at the same time her voice was much calmer and colder. It was clear that whatever it was that she had decided on, she wouldn’t change her mind about it, no matter what Junhee would say or how much he begged. Her son knew that, too, and still he opened his mouth to disagree, when his eyes fell on Sehyoon. He stared at him, obviously not having expected him, and slowly closed his mouth again without saying anything, while trying to blink away tears of anger. 

“Let’s talk about this later...” He eventually mumbled, his clenched fists showing that he was still angry but his face looked more composed again. Lady Park nodded and gestured a servant to prepare for the dessert. 

The rest of the day passed in a blur. Sehyoon wanted nothing more than some time alone with his husband; every inch of his body yearning for Junhee’s touch and the feeling of holding him in his arms, but there was no room for such a private moment. Instead, they both had to work, consisting of Junhee talking to people, smiling for pictures or signing documents and Sehyoon following him everywhere to either make sure that nobody tried to harm him, or to refill his glass with water. After they had been traveling the entire last day, they both were exhausted but occasional glances and small smiles were the things that helped Sehyoon to push through. 

Then it was finally time for dinner and Sehyoon made his way towards the kitchen, where he would eat together with the rest of the staff. At least that had been the plan until the buzzing of his phone made him put down his fork. His annoyance immediately got replaced by his heart starting to beat faster when he saw that it was Junhee who had texted him. 

_“Come to my room after dinner?”_ It was a simple question but the answer was already clear to both of them. Hastily Sehyoon shoved the food inside his mouth, the others giving him confused and curious glances. They would definitely gossip about him leaving in such a hurry but he didn’t care.

* * *

Sehyoon hadn’t even properly closed the door behind himself, before warm hands were ghosting all over his face and lips suddenly met his. Positively surprised he pulled Junhee closer, getting drunk on the feeling of soft touches and his husband’s body pressed against his own. 

“I missed you so much...”, Junhee whispered, eventually breaking their kiss, and rested his forehead against Sehyoon’s. As an answer the latter couldn’t help but press another kiss to his lips. 

They had been together the entire day but at the same time it felt like they hadn’t been this far apart from each other in a long time. After their secret wedding, Junhee had been forced to go to Japan for work and as always Sehyoon had accompanied him. However, while their days had been filled with visiting people and places or Junhee smiling for cameras (a lot), their evenings and nights had been entirely their own since Sehyoon had been the only staff to accompany Junhee. Therefore, the only other person in their small holiday home had been an old lady that came in to cook or clean now and then but hadn’t bothered them much. Japan had really felt like their honeymoon somehow… God, how much he already missed those days.

At some point, Sehyoon’s back had collided with the wall and while he had been too invested in their kiss to notice it earlier, he now felt a dull pain crawling up his spine. He really hoped nobody had heard all the noises and would come to check on them. 

“Jun-ah... I think I should leave. It was an exhausting day and you should get some sleep.” Immediately a pout appeared on his husband’s face. 

“You haven’t been here for long and I’m not tired! I—“, but he got interrupted my a yawn and Sehyoon chuckled, fondly stroking a curl out of his face. 

“You can’t lie to me, you know that.” 

“Then what about ordering you to stay? Is being the heir to the throne really this useless?” It was supposed to come off as a joke but Sehyoon could see the frustration that was shining in Junhee’s eyes and he took his hand. His husband looked at it and then back into his face.

“Please, stay for a little longer. I can just tell them that I was too scared to sleep on my own. They think I’m paranoid anyway!” Sehyoon thought about that. In Japan they had always shared a bed but here he had his own room, not too far away from Junhee’s and he wasn’t sure if it wouldn’t be too much of a risk to not return to it. However, then Junhee was tucking on his hand, pulling him towards the bed and Sehyoon knew that once again, Park Junhee was getting exactly what he wanted. 

* * *

“My mother wants me to marry.” It was Junhee’s words that pulled Sehyoon back from the comforting darkness of sleep which he had been close to drowning in. Surprised his eyes fluttered open and he blamed his sleepy dizziness in his head for his confused reply,

“But… you’re already married.” Junhee in his arms turned around and even though he couldn’t make out much in the darkness, Sehyoon knew that he was looking at him. 

“That’s true but she doesn’t know that...” They fell silent for some seconds in which Sehyoon’s brain started processing the actual weight of his husband’s words. Once they had sunken in, his body tensed. 

“What are we gonna do now? Did you try to change her mind?” 

“Of course, I did! But apparently, she already found a match... A daughter of some rich businessman. She wants more secure connections, I guess...” Sehyoon wasn’t able to stay still any longer and sat up, his hands clenched to fists. Gone was the sleepiness and what stayed were anger and desperation. 

“So, she just goes and sells you?” Junhee sighed and then sat up, too, his hands finding their way around his waist, followed by him pressing his forehead against his bare back. When he spoke again, exhaustion was clearly audible in every word,

“You know how she is...” 

“I do, and that’s why we can’t just let this happen! I can’t watch you lose everything again!” He felt how his husband‘s breath faltered and immediately Sehyoon regretted having brought up the past. 

“It was stupid to think I could go into music arts back then... I’m a prince.” 

“And that still doesn’t make you any less human!” Sehyoon turned around and carefully took Junhee’s face into his hands, noticing in shock that his cheeks were cold and wet under his fingertips. “You deserve to live too, Junhee.” He whispered, not able to hide the pain in his voice which he always felt when he saw his husband suffering. More fresh tears fell and this time Sehyoon could also hear sniffles. 

“I don’t want to lose you.” Junhee eventually got out and Sehyoon pulled him closer while fighting against his own tears. 

“You won’t lose me. Never. I won’t let them take you away from me. I promise.” 


	2. Chapter 2

They got woken by a loud knock on the door. 

“Your Highness?” A voice called and Sehyoon opened his eyes, blinking confused into the soft sunlight. The first thing he saw was Junhee next to him, still asleep while his dark hair was spread on the pillow like a messy crown. Then the knock sounded again and Sehyoon’s brain finally realized, what kind of situation they were in right now. They were no longer in Japan and that meant they were fucked if anyone would see them together like this. 

Quiet curses slipped over his lips, while he hastily got up and started grabbing his clothes that were scattered on the floor next to the bed. He tried to put them on as quickly as possible, while the person outside kept on knocking and calling for Junhee.

Sehyoon had just slipped into his pants - which had nearly ended in him falling against the wardrobe - when his husband finally sat up and looked at him, still sleep drunken. He opened his mouth as if he wanted to ask Sehyoon why he was getting dressed in such a hurry, when the voice called again,

“Your majesty, I’ll come in now!” Sehyoon gave Junhee one last panicked look and then jumped into the wardrobe, closing the door behind himself only seconds before a maid entered the room. 

“Oh, you are awake.” She sounded clearly surprised about that discovery and Sehyoon watched through the crack between the wardrobe doors, how Junhee quickly covered his bare chest with the blanket. 

“I must have overslept...” He said, trying to look composed, while his eyes glanced towards Sehyoon’s hiding spot again and again. The maid bowed deeply.

“I apologize for my intrusion but your mother is waiting for you in the library. I wanted to send Butler Kim but I couldn’t find him anywhere.” Once again Junhee’s eyes wandered to the wardrobe and the maid followed his stare in confusion. Sehyoon wanted to slap his palm against his forehead. He really loved his husband but he was horrible at pretending everything was normal, when it wasn’t. Junhee apparently came to the same conclusion, because he quickly looked back at the maid and smiled one of his charming smiles which laid entire countries to his feet. 

“It’s fine, don’t worry. He probably went out for his morning run and will be back soon.” The maid bowed her head once more and then walked towards the wardrobe. Immediately Junhee jumped up, panic flashing over his face while Sehyoon felt his heartbeat racing in his chest. 

“What are you doing?” His loud voice startled the poor woman who gave him a shocked look. 

“I—I wanted to find you some clothes to get dressed in, Your majesty. The press will be here soon. Apparently, there is a big announcement to make and they are preparing articles about it.” Sehyoon’s stomach turned itself upside down and by the way how Junhee gulped, he knew that they both were very aware of just what exactly that announcement would be. 

“Okay, but I can get dressed by myself. I don’t need any help today, though I appreciate the offer.” 

“Ah...” They stared at each other, an awkward silence surrounding them until Junhee cleared his throat.

“Uhm...yes. I don’t need anything else so you can leave now...?” 

“Oh, of course!” The maid looked embarrassed and bowed deeply one last time, before quickly disappearing through the door. As soon as she was gone, Sehyoon stepped out of the stuffy wardrobe, thanking the fact that it was uncommonly huge. His husband gave him a guilty glance and then walked towards him. 

“I’m sorry...” He mumbled, like so often wrapping his arms around him and pressing his cheek against his back. 

“It’s fine.” Sehyoon brushed his apology off, enjoying his closeness for some more seconds before turning around and looking at him with a serious expression. 

“Will you be okay?” The other shrugged his shoulders and then nodded, not meeting his eyes and looking towards the messy bed instead. Last night they hadn’t come up with any good plans on how to prevent the engagement from happening and now Sehyoon felt bad about it. Junhee was the most important person in his life. He should be spending every second of the day trying to come up with a solution to keep him safe instead of giving into the urge to get lost in his presence. 

He raised his hand, tenderly placing it on Junhee’s cheek. 

“Don’t worry. We’ll come up with something.” He said, trying to sound convincing enough for his husband to believe him. Junhee gave him a loving smile and then pressed a kiss to his lips. 

“I’m so grateful to have you.” His voice was quiet but his words made the constantly present butterflies in Sehyoon’s stomach go wild. He pulled him even closer and couldn’t keep himself from connecting their lips again, nearly getting lost in the feeling like he often did, but Junhee stopped him, “My mother is waiting.” He reminded him, regret about it clearly showing on his face, followed by him stepping past Sehyoon to get dressed while the latter watched him. 

They were dating for nearly two years now and yet he still hadn’t gotten tired of looking at Junhee. He loved everything about him; the shape of his body, the small moles that were scattered over his golden skin and the knowing smile Junhee gave him once he noticed that he was being watched. 

“You know, I love it when you look at me like that but you are still wearing the same clothes as yesterday and even though my mother is oblivious, she isn’t _that_ oblivious.” 

“Huh?” Sehyoon snapped out of his trance and his husband cackled. 

“Go and change your clothes, idiot.” He ordered but not without pressing a loving kiss to his cheek, before he vanished into his bathroom. 

* * *

The next time that Sehyoon saw Junhee, was two hours later, when the other suddenly burst through the library door and ran past Sehyoon without waiting for him. 

“Your Highness!” He called, hating having to use Junhee’s formal title instead of just his name, while he quickly hurried after him. The other didn’t stop until they had left the building and went deep into the huge garden, where they got hidden by bushes and trees. After making sure that nobody was there to see, Junhee abruptly turned around and threw himself into Sehyoon’s arms who caught him surprised. 

“What happened?” He carefully asked and Junhee groaned loudly, burying his face against his chest. 

“They’ll announce my engagement in two weeks. Seems like my mother wants to get done with it as fast as possible and with as much fuss as she can summon up in that short time. There will even be a ball as celebration and I’ll have to meet _her_ next week.” Sehyoon felt his body turn cold at this. Only two more weeks. Two more weeks before Junhee would get forced to marry a woman which he had never met before. That was, if they didn’t come up with a solution before that. He wrapped his arms around his husband, holding him as close to his chest as possible. 

“I won’t let that happen.” He said, still not knowing how he would prevent it but very determined to do so. Sehyoon was just about to press a kiss to Junhee’s lips, when suddenly the noises of someone running towards them made them jump apart from each other, startled. The same maid that had already disturbed them this morning, appeared, panting while she bowed apologetically.

“Your majesty,” she got out, apparently not having noticed anything out of the ordinary, even though they were still standing unusually close to each other, “Your older sister arrived and she asked for you.”

* * *

“Jun-ah!” The woman called as soon as they had entered the living room and Junhee ran towards her like a child towards its parents. 

“Day!” She caught him and they held each other tight while Sehyoon watched the scene with a fond smile. Then he closed the door and placed himself next to another man, dressed in a similar dark suit as him, who was already standing by the window. He greeted him with a small nod before they both focused their attention back towards the couple that was now holding each other’s hands with bright smiles.

“Why are you here?” Junhee wanted to know, sounding surprised. “Does mother know?” Da-eun smiled. 

“Do you think I would be here otherwise? I don’t know why she suddenly changed her mind but she was the one who invited me to come in the first place. Apparently, there will be a big event happening soon. I heard my baby brother met someone special.” She winked meaningfully, apparently not noticing how Junhee’s face fell. 

“She told you about that?” His sister nodded eagerly. 

“I’m so glad you were able to find someone, she approved of. We both know how...stubborn she can be.” Sehyoon shifted from one foot to the other, uneasiness slowly spreading through his body. Junhee gave him a quick glance and the question in it was clear. He bit on his lower lip before giving him a tiny nod. Sehyoon trusted in his husband’s judgment. 

“Da-eun...” He turned back to his sister, “There is something I have to tell you...” She gave him a confused look, before she turned to Sehyoon and the other man,

“Byeongkwan, Sehyoon, could you give us some privacy for a moment?” But Junhee quickly shook his head. 

“It’s okay, I trust them...Also Sehyoon...he...I...” It was obvious that Junhee didn’t know how to tell his sister and, when he gave Sehyoon another for help seeking glance, the latter took it as a sign to step forward and carefully take Junhee’s hand into his. His husband held onto it tightly and Sehyoon squeezed his trembling fingers in an attempt to calm him. Meanwhile, Da-eun looked at them with wide eyes. 

“You are...a couple?” She asked and Junhee nodded, new determination in his eyes. 

“We got married not too long ago.” 

“Oh dear...” Da-eun looked like she was close to bursting into tears but Sehyoon didn’t know if they were tears of joy, sympathy or both. “So, mother doesn’t know...?” Junhee shook his head and his sister nodded slowly as if she was trying to process what all of this meant for them. Sehyoon couldn’t blame her for looking so distraught; their situation was indeed bad.

“What...do you think?” Junhee eventually wanted to know and Da-eun gave him a fond but sad smile. 

“I’m happy for you of course! I’ve always wanted you to marry the person you love but...at the same time I can’t stop thinking about my baby brother having to endure so many obstacles on his own. I don’t want you to have to give up on everything like me…” The first tears started rolling down her cheeks and Junhee let go of Sehyoon’s hand to step forward and gently brush them away.

“You don’t need to worry. I’m not alone anymore… I have Sehyoon by my side now and the throne never meant as much to me as to you anyway, but I’m sure we’ll find a solution…” That seemed to comfort Da-eun, because she gave Sehyoon a grateful smile which he returned, before she wrapped her arms around her brother. 

“Well, then just know that I’m incredibly happy for you and that you can always count on me to support the both of you. I won’t let mother destroy another life!” 

* * *

“Mr. Kim?” It took all of Sehyoon’s body control to stay still and not flinch startled at the cold voice. Merely being an employee and Junhee’s bodyguard, he heard it often but it hardly ever addressed him and he preferred it that way. Sehyoon stopped and slowly turned around. Right now, Junhee was in his therapy session which meant Sehyoon finally got some time for breakfast but apparently his break had gotten cut shorter today. 

“My lady...” He greeted Junhee’s mother who took some seconds to eye him from head to toe. Sehyoon felt uncomfortable under her observing stare but he knew that he couldn’t show that. The dead-king’s wife didn’t like to have any weakness around herself and Sehyoon was around her and her son too much. 

“Junhee will spend the rest of today and tomorrow with me for the preparations for the ball, so you can use that time to rest. I noticed that you haven’t taken any days off in the last couple months and people are starting to talk...” At her words, Sehyoon felt how his body turned cold. Resting? The queen had never before asked him to rest and he knew that this order hadn’t come from her being generous and caring. Uneasiness spread inside of him but he tried to look unaffected. People had started to talk and though he couldn’t be sure what she was referring to, he was definitely hiding enough secrets that could get him and Junhee into a difficult situation, if they didn’t stay as secrets.

“I should take today and tomorrow off, my lady?” He hated how unsure his voice sounded and stood a bit straighter to make up for it with his confident posture.

“You can use that time to visit your family. Get some time away from the palace. Nobody should be forced to stay here for too long, don’t you think so?” She gave him a smile that didn’t contain any warmth. Sehyoon gulped. He didn’t want to leave. Yes, he hated the palace more than anything else but at the same time this was where he could be with Junhee and the thought of abandoning him made him feel sick. He couldn’t just leave his husband here, where everybody was waiting for him to make a mistake so they could throw themselves at him. Still, there wasn’t much he could do without making his mother and the rest of the staff even more suspicious. 

“I appreciate your concern, my lady.” Sehyoon said in an attempt to seem grateful and bowed his head, “I’ll leave after I informed the prince about my plans.” At this, she dismissively waved her hand. 

“There is no need to. I’ll tell him once he is done with his therapist. Go and enjoy your free days, Mr. Kim.” She gave him another smile which looked like she was daring him to go against her order. It was clear that if he tried anything, she would make him regret it. Again, he bowed but this time deeper, while Junhee’s mother walked away, her retinue that had waited at the end of the hallway, quickly hurrying after her. Once she was gone, Sehyoon stood up straight again, feeling his hands clenching to fists. 

Only five more days until the ball and the queen had just shown him that he didn’t hold any power to go against her will nor had they come up with a good plan yet. Still, he wouldn’t abandon Junhee just like that. Never. 

* * *

Entering his apartment didn’t feel like coming home. Sehyoon had spent so much time away that he felt weirdly disconnected from it and the furniture looked unfamiliar. He let his eyes wander over the messy shoe section by his door and sighed, while he kicked off his own neatly cleaned, black leather shoes. His butler outfit seemed entirely out of place here, where everything looked so normal. 

Slowly Sehyoon made his way into the living room, dropping his bag onto the sofa before flopping down next to it. He closed his eyes, playing with the idea of taking a nap but his thoughts immediately wandered to Junhee instead. What was he doing right now? His therapy session had ended an hour ago and usually he liked to take a walk before having lunch and then riding lessons not much later. Was there someone to accompany him, now that Sehyoon was gone? And how did he feel? Had he read the text message in which Sehyoon had explained the situation or did he simply think that his husband had abandoned him? 

At that thought, frustration rushed through Sehyoon’s veins. How tired he was of all of this; of not having any control or power to help Junhee nor being allowed to touch and be with him. He groaned, burying his head in his hands when he heard someone entering the room.

“Sehyoon? What are you doing here?” His housemate looked confused and Sehyoon couldn’t blame him. After all he usually called when he was about to come home and that didn’t happen very often. Slowly Sehyoon stood up, giving him a small smile. 

“Hey Donghun... Missed me?” Then there were arms pulling him into a hug and Sehyoon happily returned it, enjoying the feeling of his best friend’s comforting touch. 

“Of course, I missed you! The last time you texted me was like three weeks ago! Dammit, Sehyoon, you should really stop worrying me so much.” 

“I’m sorry...I’ll try my best...” He mumbled and then sighed, letting go of his best friend so that he they were able to sit down. Donghun observed him with a frown. 

“Did something happen? The last time I saw you you were glowing of happiness and now you look like the weight of the entire world is on your shoulders...” Again, Sehyoon sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

“That’s kinda how it feels...well, the weight of my world at least.” 

“What do you mean? Is Junhee okay?” Sehyoon opened his mouth to answer, only to close it again when he felt how tears began to gather in his eyes. He didn’t want to cry. Definitely not in front of Junhee nor in front of Donghun but acting strong became more difficult with every passing day that made the ball crawl closer. Donghun’s expression was full of worry. 

“Yoon-ah you know you can talk to me, right? I’m here for you.” Sehyoon nodded, not trusting his voice, followed by the first tears starting to fall. 

“Junhee is supposed to marry...They will announce the engagement in five days...” 

„Oh shit…” Donghun mumbled, giving him a sympathetic look. Again, he leaned forward to embrace him in another hug and Sehyoon buried his head against his shoulder. It felt good to have someone to lean on for once. Not that Junhee didn’t comfort him whenever he needed it but if he told him that everything would be all right again, Sehyoon wouldn’t believe it. There simply didn’t seem to be a way.

While the world had turned more and more modern with passing time, the palace had stayed the same. They called it traditions but in Sehyoon’s opinion all they did was making the people’s lives in the palace miserable. Da-eun would have been a great queen but rules that had gotten set up a long time ago forbid her to ever walk that path. It was dedicated to her younger brother, destroying all his dreams of pursuing a musical career. In the end both children had rebelled in their own ways; Da-eun marrying a man her mother didn’t approve of, whereupon she had gotten unofficially banned from the palace, while Junhee ran away.

However, it had only taken three months until his mother had broken him enough to make him return without any resistance and even now Junhee didn’t talk much about that time. Sehyoon had come into his life shortly afterwards. He originally had been supposed watch him and make sure Junhee wouldn’t run away again, but in the end, he had fallen in love with him instead. Too bad that another important tradition was the continuance of the royal bloodline, not to forget that Junhee’s mom would do whatever possible to get rid of Sehyoon if she ever found out about their marriage.

So, what solution was there? Nothing seemed to be coming to Sehyoon’s mind right now. Instead, he felt incredibly tired and his head on Donghun’s shoulder seemed to be much heavier than usually.

“Can we just stay like this and sleep?” He asked quietly, whereupon he earned a chuckle from his friend.

“I would really love to but I have to go to work…You should get some rest, though. We can think about a solution at dinner.” Carefully he pulled away and gave Sehyoon an encouraging smile. “Everything will be all right.” Sehyoon returned the smile weakly, allowing himself to believe in Donghun’s words, though only for a second.

Everything would be all right…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey hooo~~~
> 
> I really want to thank you all for the kind feedback I got so far <3 I'm sorry I didn't reply to comments yet but I'll get to that in a second uwu
> 
> It always makes me happy when I can make others happy by writing rare pair fics bc it's fun to discover every ships chemistry and they all deserve the same amount of appreciation and love uwu
> 
> I hope you enjoyed the 2nd chapter too and as you can see, this fic will probably have 5 chaps of different lenghts hehe 
> 
> So yea, you can look forward to the next chap and some angst hehe ^^ and if you want to stay updated, you can also follow my twitter acc (@babbl1ng)
> 
> See you soon and stay healthy! <3


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy early valentine's day from me uwu~ <3

Sehyoon got woken by his phone going off and he sleepily searched for it on his beside table, before holding it to his ear.

“Hello?”

“Mr. Kim?”

He immediately recognized the voice as the head of the palace security and hastily sat up, suddenly feeling wide awake.

“Yes? What happened?” If the palace security called him and that on his day off, then something must be incredibly wrong.

“There has been an emergency. The prince cannot be found anywhere on the palace grounds and his phone is switched off. We couldn’t find any signs of a kidnapping, so right now we think he left of his own accord, but we can’t be sure.” At this information, Sehyoon felt his stomach drop and his blood turn cold as ice. Junhee had disappeared? “Did he try to contact you or have you perhaps seen him?”

“No. It’s my day off so I haven’t seen him since this morning. Are you sure it wasn’t a kidnapping?” Images of Junhee getting dragged into a car, before getting tortured by blurry figures while he was screaming for Sehyoon to come and rescue him appeared in his mind and his stomach turned itself upside down. It was as if the air in his bedroom was too stuffy to breath all of a sudden and he hastily got up.

“I’ll go and search for him too!” He announced, already making a list with locations where he could possibly find his husband. Nobody knew Junhee better than him and the security man apparently agreed to that because he didn’t try to stop him and only told him to call as soon as he found any kind of new information, before he hung up.

Sehyoon quickly got dressed, not bothering to brush his hair or teeth since the worry about Junhee was all he could think about. His husband wasn’t stupid. He wouldn’t just run away from the palace. Not again. At the same time Sehyoon didn’t know what he would do if something had happened to him. What if he had really gotten kidnapped and was waiting for Sehyoon to find and rescue him? What if that wasn’t only a nightmare that seemed to be constantly haunting him in his dreams?

A look out of the window reminded Sehyoon to grab a jacket before he headed downstairs. While the sun had still been shining earlier, the afternoon had not only brought bad news but also rain that was pattering against the windows and would probably make their search for clues much more difficult. Sehyoon could only pray that he would find Junhee as fast as possible.

Still trying to decide on where to look for his husband first, he crossed the parking lot with big steps, aiming for his car only to stop when his eyes fell on a figure sitting huddled next to it on the ground. Though there were still some meters separating them, Sehyoon immediately recognized the soaked clothes which clearly weren’t helping to keep the trembling man warm.

“Jun-ah?” He called astounded, relief as well as more worry rushing through him. At the sound of his voice Junhee looked up, his wet hair sticking to his unusual pale face. He attempted to get up, using the car as support and Sehyoon quickly crossed the remaining distance between them to take his arm. Junhee stared at him with wide, vulnerable eyes and only now did Sehyoon notice that he was crying, his tears getting mixed with the rain.

“I didn’t know which building it is…”, he whispered, followed by Sehyoon pulling him into a tight hug without caring that his husband’s drenched clothes were slowly soaking his jacket and jeans.

“What the hell, Junhee?! What are you doing here? I was so worried!”, he exclaimed. He hadn’t intended on raising his voice but he simply couldn’t help it.

“I’m sorry.” Junhee’s voice was shaking, just like his body, and Sehyoon pressed him even closer as if that would protect him from the cold rain. “I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t stay there without you! I tried but…”, he stopped, sniffling loudly. “She wants me to meet her tomorrow. I…I don’t know what to do.” The sound of sobs pierced through Sehyoon’s heart like needles and while he had still felt more confident about them finding a solution earlier, that confidence now seemed to vanish into thin air. Still, he couldn’t give up.

“Come… Let’s get you inside.” He mumbled, carefully taking Junhee’s hand, before leading him inside the building and his apartment. There he helped Junhee undress, kissing away all his tears and only allowed his own vision to get blurry once his husband was in the shower and he was searching for something dry for him to wear. Afterwards he watched Junhee putting on the clothes without any kind of comment, his eyes looking weirdly empty.

“Please…Don’t send me back.” Sehyoon who had just been about to go and make some tea, turned back around and gave Junhee a guilty glance.

“Jun-ah… They are searching for you…” His husband huffed.

“So what? Let them search and not find me. Let the whole fucking country think that I died in a ditch! I don’t care! And they don’t care about me either! They just pretend to!” His sudden wave of anger took Sehyoon by surprise. Junhee usually was pretty good at controlling himself and keeping his emotions hidden. Well, except it came to his mother.

“I’m so tired of all of this! I never asked for it. So please don’t tell me that you will betray me too, because you are one of the only people I actually care about, Sehyoon.” They stood in silence for some seconds, reason and emotions fighting inside of Sehyoon until his heart eventually won and he nodded weakly.

“I won’t send you back… At least not right now… But we can’t hide here forever, you know that.” Junhee only shrugged, before he slowly walked closer.

“I know…” He whispered, his right hand finding its way to Sehyoon’s hair. “But right now, this feels like a sweet dream I don’t want to wake up from…” While he was talking, he moved closer and closer until their lips met and Sehyoon wrapped his arms around his waist. He returned the kiss hungrily, getting drunken on the feeling like he always did and enjoying Junhee’s soft whines when he started mouthing down his throat.

“I don’t…want to be king if that means I’ll have to give you up.” His husband somehow got out between heavy breathes, while Sehyoon’s hands crawled under his shirt. At his words, however, he froze, staring at Junhee with wide eyes.

“That’s… It’s not something to decide on lightly…” He said, feeling Junhee’s racing heartbeat under his palm, while his husband returned his stare with vulnerability but also determination.

“I didn’t… I thought about this a lot and today only confirmed what I already knew. I love you, Sehyoon but I’ve never loved being a prince even half as much.” Sehyoon knew it was wrong and still he couldn’t help but smile, feeling the butterflies dancing in his stomach. Junhee had decided to stay with him and though it shouldn’t make him happy, it was as if Junhee was telling him that he wanted to marry him all over again. Sehyoon wasn’t being rational but when had he ever been rational around the man he loved?

“Then stay with me. Don’t give up on us and stay with me instead.” Again, he closed the distance between them, their kiss now being a lot slower and softer but still as full of love and passion. Sehyoon loved Junhee and only for today he wanted to believe that they could really stay together forever.

  


* * *

  


“Sehyoon? Are you still sleeping? I thought about ordering pizza and—oh!” Bright light fell into the darkness of Sehyoon’s bedroom and forced him to close his eyes again. He must have fallen asleep at some point so that he hadn’t heard Donghun come back home. Slowly, he forced himself to reopen his eyes, looking at his friend who awkwardly stood in the doorway.

“Sorry…I didn’t know he would be coming over, too. I’ll order pizza and call you, when it arrived.” With these words Donghun quickly disappeared again, carefully closing the door behind himself. Sehyoon looked after him, his brain rebooting while Junhee next to him began moving.

“Yoon-ah?” He mumbled, sounding as sleepy as Sehyoon felt, “did someone see us?”

“Only Donghun, don’t worry.” Sehyoon assured him, turning around so that he came face to face with his husband’s red, puffy cheeks. He didn’t even try to suppress the smile that grew on his lips at the sight, his fingers wandering to Junhee’s face nearly automatically. “Donghun is gonna order us pizza.”

His husband hummed satisfied. “Sounds nice…I didn’t have pizza in ages.”

Sehyoon laughed. “Me neither.”

They stayed like this for a bit longer, simply looking into each other’s eyes while Sehyoon’s fingers were caressing Junhee’s cheek and the latter’s hand had found its way onto his bare chest, feeling for his heartbeat.

“You know…I meant what I said earlier…” He eventually spoke up, a small smile appearing on his face when he felt Sehyoon’s heartbeat getting faster at his words. “I won’t give up on us. I just can’t.”

“And I don’t want you to.” Sehyoon replied, before he sighed. “However, that’s selfish of me. I should be the person to tell you to decide for the greater good instead of a man who you might no longer love in a couple of years.”

“I can’t imagine not loving you…” Junhee whispered, a pout forming on his lips, before he took a deep, shaky breath. “I’m not only doing this to be together with you, though. I wish I could say that I am, but it would be a lie…” He looked like he was afraid his words could have hurt Sehyoon but the latter only felt relief. He didn’t want Junhee to throw away his life for him. He didn’t want him to regret his decision.

“Turning away from the palace means I’ll finally get a step closer to becoming the person I want to be. It’s like I’m suffocating and staying will eventually kill me. I want to study music, Sehyoon! I want to go back to university and you could come with me! I know you couldn’t go because of your parents’ situation but I’m sure Da-eun will help us. You could also live your dreams.” The future Junhee was describing did indeed sound like a dream. Them both together in university, doing something they had both gotten denied of. And still, it wouldn’t be that easy.

“What about your mother?” Junhee shrugged.

“She’ll probably disown me…as if I’d care…”

“And the palace? Your bloodline?”

“Why are you even thinking about that?!” Junhee sat up, staring at Sehyoon with angry eyes. “What does it matter to you? It’s the 21. Century! People shouldn’t still be caring about a royal family! Or bloodlines! Or the gender of the head of the country!” Sehyoon bit on his lower lip, regretting his former words. It wasn’t that he didn’t share the same opinion as Junhee, he just couldn’t stop worrying that his husband would eventually regret his decision.

“Jun-ah… I’m sorry…” He said, carefully taking Junhee’s hands that were clenched into fists. “I agree with you, I just want you to think about it for a bit longer. I don’t want you to make such a decision too fast.”

“I didn’t—" But Junhee got interrupted by a knock on the door, followed by Donghun’s muffled voice sounding through the wood,

“I don’t want to disturb you two, but the pizza will be here soon so you should have put on some clothes by then.”

  


* * *

  


It hurt having to drive Junhee back to the palace the next day, but they both knew that they didn’t get much of a choice. Spending the evening and night at Sehyoon’s apartment had felt amazing. It was the first time, Donghun and Junhee had met each other for longer than ten minutes on the phone and seeing them acting as if they had known each other for years, filled Sehyoon’s heart with love and happiness.

It was like a dream to have his two favorite people in the same room at the same time; being able to laugh about Donghun’s jokes while also wrapping an arm around his husband’s waist without having to worry about getting caught. Falling asleep with Junhee snuggled up against his chest was much easier, too, but it had made getting up in the morning twice as hard.

“Are you ready?” Sehyoon asked, observing the way his husband chewed on his lower lip nervously, before shaking his head.

“She’ll be angry…” He mumbled and Sehyoon nodded sympathetically.

“I know, but I’ll be right by your side the entire time. I won’t let her send me away again, I promise.” He grabbed Junhee’s hand and squeezed it encouragingly. “Soon, all of this will be over. You have to hang in there only a bit longer.” His husband gulped and nodded, before he finally returned his stare, his eyes so full of love that Sehyoon’s heart did a tiny backflip.

“You too, Yoon-ah. I know this isn’t easy for you either… I love you.” Sehyoon gave him a soft smile.

“I love you, too. And don’t worry, we’ll be al—” In that moment, he got interrupted by a knock on the window and he quickly let go of Junhee’s hand. God, how much he hated to live like this.

“Your majesty?” Sounded the muffled voice of one of the servants through the glass. Junhee closed his eyes and sighed, before he turned to open the door.

“What is so urgent that it can’t wait until got out of the car first?” He wanted to know, an unusual sharpness in his voice. The servant went bright red and bowed deeply in apology.

“Your mother wants you to get dressed festively as quickly as possible. The guests will arrive very soon.” Junhee nodded and then walked towards the palace. However, when Sehyoon tried to follow him, the servant stepped into his way, again bowing deeply.

“The lady wishes you a second calm day of rest. She appreciates your help with finding the prince and allows you to stay home for the entire rest of the week.” Sehyoon knitted his eyebrows, while staring at the servant. Junhee’s mother no longer trusted him and now tried her best to keep them separated. It was only a question of time until she would find a reason to make him resign and that thought made anger boil up inside of him.

“I’ll stay. Let me through.” He growled and the servant’s bow got even deeper.

“I’m sorry but I’m not allowed to let you inside…”

“What is going on?” Junhee’s voice sounded confident and commanding; the voice of a prince which was so different to his husband’s. However, it always worked and the servant hastily turned around, only to bend forward in another bow. Sehyoon felt kind of sorry for his back.

“I got orders to send Butler Kim home for the rest of the week.” The servant explained and Junhee gave Sehyoon a worried glance, before he shifted his attention back to the bowing man.

“Butler Kim will stay. I need his services and that’s my final word on this matter!”

Sehyoon couldn’t suppress the small grin that formed on his face, while he walked around the servant without waiting for his response. Junhee was the crown prince and no servant would dare to talk back anyway. Soon, he had caught up to his husband and they both made their way inside, where he allowed his grin to grow even wider. Once Junhee noticed it, he gave him a confused glance.

“What are you looking so happy for? My mother is onto us!” Sehyoon only shrugged, looking around carefully to make sure they were alone, before putting a hand on the small of Junhee’s back, whereupon his husband sucked in his breath in surprise.

“I don’t know… I kinda forgot how attractive you are when you get bossy at others, I guess.” He smirked, enjoying Junhee’s surprised face a lot more than he probably should.

“Yoon-ah! What are you doing?” Finally, they reached Junhee’s room and the latter nearly dragged Sehyoon inside. “We have to be careful!”

“I know… It’s just difficult to control myself, knowing you’ll be all mine so soon.”

“Not if we somehow fuck it up…” His husband mumbled, but his cheeks had turned pink and he didn’t fight against Sehyoon pulling him close.

“No matter what happens, we’ll be together. We’ve got a plan, right?” Junhee chuckled dryly.

“Are we even allowed to call that a plan?” Sehyoon nodded eagerly, his hands finding their way around his husband’s waist.

“Of course!” He tenderly pressed a kiss to Junhee’s forehead. “Now let’s get you dressed. We don’t want to make your fiancée wait.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I think this fic is a good example of what happens when I watch too many kdramas lmao
> 
> Anyway I hope y'all are still enjoying it :D If yes, you can always follow my Twitter account [@babbl1ng](https://twitter.com/Babbl1ng) and support me there ^^ or just scream at me in the comments hahah :3  
> Otherwise you can also donate and support me [here](https://ko-fi.com/ba55l1ng) :3
> 
> Have a nice weekend and stay healthy guys~

**Author's Note:**

> Consider this cheesy kdrama chaos my Christmas present hahah If you are celebrating it, I hope you are having a nice Christmas (even with covid happening) and this new fic could make you smile a bit :)
> 
> I really enjoyed writing a Sehjun fic like this hahaha it's nothing too big and I took my time but it still has a few more chaps which I will upload bit by bit heheh
> 
> btw you can also follow me on twitter (@babbl1ng) :D
> 
> Stay strong and healthy! <3 
> 
> ~babb


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